Artists House / Yuputira of Mariko Mori

Located on Miyako Island, nearly 200 miles southwest of Okinawa, Yuputira is the Japanese artist Mariko Mori’s house and studio space.

The artist spent five years observing the land in relation to the sun and the natural environment and 3D-modeling various forms and structures. She then partnered with Tokyo’s Ring Architects to build a house that would be in harmony with the landscape.

The building’s spherical shape was inspired by the bleached coral that frequently washes up on the shores. The studio on the upper floor overlooks a small crop of ocean rocks, Additionally, there is a main bedroom on the ground floor, two guest rooms, and a room for tea ceremonies.

The exterior walls of her house are made of pearlescent white concrete that Mori laboriously mixed to her perfection; the floors are also poured from white-coated concrete that is flatter and less lustrous. Additionally, all of her furniture—which she is having shipped from London, where she used to live—is white.

Inspired by the name of the island’s sun god, according to local myths and songs, Mori has named her house Yuputira. Nature—the ocean, the sun—is such a powerful force. Worshipping the gods of nature is very primal for the islanders. It is part of everyday life.